Abyssal Awakening

Alice stared at Enris.

For a moment, she wasn’t sure what to think.

A god who had this kind of desire... the one who sits upon the divine throne wants to die as a... human?

"Is that why you’re showing me all of this?" Alice asked as Enris simply laughed.

"Maybe, maybe not. Perhaps this is simply another one of the whims belonging to the God of the Eclipse."

But Alice didn’t move her gaze away.

There wasn’t a need to say anything because the god knew the truth had been revealed.

Shrugging her shoulders, Enris leaned against the wall of the house.

"So why are you planning on going against Nyer?" Alice finally asked.

She wanted to know what Enris would gain out of doing this.What made her change.

Something must have happened to affect her.

"Well..." Enris smiled, coiling her hair around her finger.

"Someone had been rather... honest, let’s say. That the end I desire is one of acknowledgement and respect. Killing people... well, that’ll only give me rage, according to them. Not acknowledgement." Enris exhaled through her nose.

"If I follow along with Nyer’s plan, I won’t get the end I desire. He’s someone who will do everything and anything to bring back Veli. Like me, he is merely an empty shell of desire at this point." She glanced up at the sky.

"And if I am alive in the new age that he brings about... I doubt Veli would give me the end I desire. She’s not someone who can give up everything for a fight. She cares too much about the world and its people."

Alice nodded her head in agreement. Velouria wasn’t someone who could fulfil Enris’ wish.

Not in the way she wanted it.

"So you think I’ll be the one to give you it?"

Enris held back a laugh and shook her head.

"You? Well... I had hopes for you at the start. I thought that you, in all of your abnormal power, would be able to give me the wish I desire. But not anymore." Enris smirked.

There was a sense of... resignation in her voice. Like someone who had accepted that she’ll never get what she wants.

"If you know, then why go so far? Wouldn’t it be easier for you to just... watch everything unfold?"

Enris tapped her finger.

Why?

Such an easy question, yet so difficult to answer.

"Because I see the end of the world approaching, and it’s different from what I wanted. At least..." Enris paused. "That’s the first answer that comes to mind. But that could also just be trickery. These days, I just don’t know anymore."

Enris pushed herself off the wall with a deep sigh.

"So I figured... as the only one I could truly call a friend back then... why not honour Veli’s desires one more time?" She smiled, patting Alice on the shoulder.

"Help out her successor a little while figuring out my way through life."

"Can I trust your words?" Alice narrowed her eyes.

"Trust? Me? PFT!!! Ahahaha!" Enris couldn’t hold it back anymore as she clutched her stomach.

"Girl, you clearly haven’t seen the kind of stuff I’ve done in the past. Trusting my words is the last thing you should do." She wiped away her tears.

"Don’t get me wrong. This is not me begging for your forgiveness or redemption. This is the whims of a god wondering if this path is the one to carry me to my Elysium."

Enris grinned.

"I’m evil and will always be so. Just because there’s a greater threat doesn’t mean I’m not evil. Me helping you doesn’t pardon me of the chaos I’ve caused in the past. In fact, I might take so much offence at you forgiving me that I might just turn around and help Nyer instead."

"What the f*ck is wrong with you, woman?" Alice’s smile twitched.

One moment Enris was sad, the next she was happy, and now she was proclaiming herself as evil.

A chaotic and spontaneous god like no other.

"A lot of things are wrong with me. How else can I establish the Cult of the Eclipse?" Enris shrugged.

"But that’s enough fun for now. This dream here serves two purposes." Enris took a deep breath to calm herself.

As much as she was enjoying this, she couldn’t get too carried away.

There’s a reason why she brought Alice here.

"The first purpose is to let you see what kind of realm Nyer is trying to bring to our reality. One where each individual can ’dream’ their ideal world. For Verona, it would be her home village, with everyone she cares about being alive along with the others that died during the famine." Enris turned to the village centre where a fire was keeping the surrounding people warm.

Even though they were in the dream, it felt like nothing could interact with them. At least not for the moment.

"I’m guessing there are complications with giving everyone a dream world." Alice exhaled through her nose.

"Of course. When everything goes too well, the human mind will naturally be sceptical. How do you think people will react when they realise their reality had all just been a dream?" Enris nodded.

"There are probably bigger complications, but that’s something revealed by the passage of time rather than a small realm like this. The second purpose... well. Rather than showing you this dream, it’s more so to save Verona herself."

"Save Verona?" Alice frowned.

"You know about what happened in the North. Verona had split herself from the false divinity in order to save her life. But how could it possibly be so easy? Trying to cut yourself free from the divinity is akin to cutting apart your soul.

"With its separation, a piece of Verona’s identity had disappeared. If I had to describe her current state... she’s like embers. The flame has died, leaving behind the glowing embers." Enris explained. "In this state, you either give her new fuel, that is healing her soul, or watch as she dies, unable to reignite."

Alice knew the situation in the North wasn’t great. But hearing this from Enris, she finally had a rough idea of how bad a spot Verona was in.

"So what does this dream accomplish? Is it giving her new fuel? A foundation to work with?"

"I wish." Enris chuckled. "This dream works similarly to a foundation. But it’s only temporary. I took advantage of what Nyer has already put into place and turned this into scaffolding for the soul, I suppose."

"So long as Verona remains in this dream, the slower her body will die. It should give the people around her plenty of time to try and figure out a solution for her current predicament.

"Do you know what happens to the soul if it leaves the body for too long?" she asked.

"The body and soul desynchronise, and the soul can’t return to the vessel, right?" Alice replied instantly, surprising Enris.

Her knowledge on souls was deeper than average.

"I’m starting to think you forgot I was the one who killed Kazira." Alice creased her brows.

"Killing and knowing are two very different things. You can kill a god, but do you truly know everything that goes on in the background?" Enris flipped the question back to Alice.

"Fair point."

"But yes, this dream is only a temporary solution. It’s to slow things down rather than an actual fix."

Reaching this point, Alice scratched her head in frustration.

"I see now. You’re just using this moment to confirm multiple questions, right? What I’m fighting for, how I’ll react to you, and my thoughts regarding the dream." Alice turned to Enris, who smiled a devious smile.

"Right you are. I’m simply letting you know about Verona’s condition. But a warning first. Since Verona has split off a portion of her soul due to the mistake of the false divinity, she’ll start ’forgetting’ pieces of herself. Why she does things and so on.

"But this dream is a reminder for her. If her willpower is strong enough, she’ll turn this place into a foundation that will support and prevent the collapse of her soul. And if she fails..." Enris narrowed her eyes. "Then she dies. Simple, right?"

"I suppose if you dumb things down like that, it can be considered ’simple’. So what do you want me to do about it?"

"Nothing. Absolutely nothing. Leave things as they are. Focus on the Void along with the wound in the sky for now."

Do nothing.

A simple command.

Yet Alice pulled a face of annoyance.

To do nothing was probably the worst thing Enris could ask of her.

In the first place, what does "do nothing" even entail? Should she just waste her days drinking mead?

Alice didn’t know.

"If you can’t... well, tough luck. If you can’t handle something like this, how can you even think about succeeding Veli?"

Clapping her hands, Enris disappeared with a swirl of snow as Alice waved it away with a light cough.

But as the snow settled, Alice noticed a figure staring at her.

The young form of Verona was staring intently at her.

Then, after a slight pause, she opened her mouth.

"Alice?"

###

Enris sat atop a hill that overlooked the village.

She took a deep breath and brought a small cup of alcohol to her lips.

All that talking... and she was reminded of her mistake with Velouria.

"Not sure if the girl shares your morals. But it seems like she’s one that the people of this world can count on."

Enris half expected Velouria to reply. But at the same time, how could she? Velouria was long gone, and she was one of the reasons why.

A bitter smile appeared on her face as she raised her cup to the sky. A drink offered for the dead.

"I wonder if I can reach my Elysium this time."

Tilting her head back, Enris swallowed the drink in one go.